Pelfrey working the kinks out of his sinker

DETROIT — The first sign that Mike Pelfrey’s between-starts side session was fairly serious on Saturday morning was when manager Brad Ausmus got out his mitt and a mask and caught him. The longtime catcher has done it for pitchers more than a few times the last few years, but usually saves it for when he wants to get a familiar vantage point for pitch movement.

The other sign came when Ausmus and Pelfrey went out to the bullpen and got to work. By the time they were done, Pelfrey had made more than 50 pitches. It was a Verlander-like session, especially with no extra day between starts.

It was that important for Pelfrey to get his sinker down, literally and figuratively.

Pelfrey and pitching coach Rich Dubee all looked at video of Pelfrey this season and compared it to his past, trying to figure out adjustments to make. The …

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